


Stones Grow Dead Names

by Goldscythe (Darial_Kuznetsova)



Series: Nuclear Winters [7]
Category: Battle Beast, Finnish Heavy Metal, Finnish Music RPF, Machine Men, Nightwish, Reflexion - Fandom, Sonata Arctica, Stratovarius, The 69 Eyes
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, F/M, M/M, Post-Apocalypse, Post-Nuclear War, Sami Shamanism, Sami folklore, Shamanism, Supernatural - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-16
Updated: 2020-03-16
Packaged: 2021-02-26 15:07:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,155
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23168953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Darial_Kuznetsova/pseuds/Goldscythe
Summary: They carved their names in stone, so they would never be forgotten.
Relationships: Tony Kakko/OFC
Series: Nuclear Winters [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/54595
Comments: 3
Kudos: 1





	Stones Grow Dead Names

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ChristianHowe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChristianHowe/gifts).

**Stones Grow Dead Names**

Tony was staring at the floorboards, hands trembling a little. He was nervous and tried to calm himself by petting the wolf that sat in front of him, massive head on his knees. The yellow eyes were staring up at him, understanding silently.

”I know… it’s silly to be nervous about this…”

He wasn’t startled, when a pair of hands landed on his shoulders, Jenny pulling him back, against her warm body, gently working on his shoulders, letting him draw strength from her mere presence.

”You can do it. You know everything you need to do and need to know. You don’t need Jyrki anymore. You’re the eldest shaman now. You lead the Circle. They trust you and will help you. You’re not alone. You know all of them and you know they won’t hold it against you if you make a small mistake,” she explained calmly, brushing his silvery curls away from his face, detangling them from his beard.

”I still feel like a newbie. Terhi and Juha have been dealing with this kind of stuff their whole life-”

”They will be supporting you, you know it. Make Kristian proud…” she whispered in his ear and he turned his gaze outside, where Kristian was tossing a stick for the young wolves with Lumi, clearly waiting for the ceremony to start. Beyond the two playing children, he stared at the large stone they had put up at the edge of the clearing. It had names carved on it, under the Sámi runes dictating the people below being shamans and their anchors.

The list was too long and too painful for Tony to read often, but today, he felt like he needed to read them. His eyesight was slowly dimming, making the wolves act as his guides on their own volition.

**_Jani Liimatainen, Mikko Härkin, Timo Kotipelto_**. The shaman apprentice who nudged him and opened him to the spirits, his good friend and a man with one of the kindest hearts he had ever witnessed. He could still sometimes remember the feel of Timo anchoring him, even though their bond was long gone.   
  
**_Tuomas Holopainen, Johanna Kurkela_**_._ It was only appropriate to have Johanna’s name under his, they were destined to be, yet Tuomas, for some reason, rejected her in the Land of the Living. She didn’t have many memorials, only her old cabin’s ruins further south. The spot where the stone was, was the first spot Aada had actually seen the spirits of both of her parents, so others had agreed to erect the monolith there.   
  
**_Rolf Pilve, Lauri Porra, Matias Kupiainen_**. Rolf’s passing had been both a surprise and a shock. He had gone fast, yet still, holding on for three days until giving up. He had heard the horrible wet coughing himself while talking to Lauri outside their door, so he wouldn’t catch a cold the earth shaman had caught somehow. He still started to cry when he heard the Boreal Owl’s sad hoots behind the cabin, as did Elias, who was hit hard. He had suggested adding Matias’ name after Lauri, they had been lovers for so long Lauri just held on for Rolf while longing to see his partner again. Much like Timo had done. They had been good friends as well, so it only made sense, others quickly agreeing to it.   
  
**_Jyrki Linnankivi, Jussi Vuori, Tarja Turunen_**. The biggest shock came when Tarja suddenly had collapsed in pain, nothing easing her agony for almost a year, despite Terhi and Jenny managing to find the reason for it, only to come to the realization they were completely helpless against it. They never found out which one had died first and how, but Aada had suddenly pulled Lumi to her as she had been trying to go home and said it wasn’t time for her to go home yet. Terhi and Risto took care of the girl ever since, both out of duty, but also, maybe a little guilt on Terhi’s part, for not being able to help her mother.

He could hear Sámi singing outside, Aada had a delicate voice and sometimes sung this and that, making others stop what they were doing to just listen.

”Time to go. Come on.” Jenny pushed him up and he complied, the wolf already at the door by the time Jenny had rounded up the bench he had sat on and pulled on a hat and gloves.

He felt the nervousness creep up again when the attention of others was drawn to him, Jenny’s presence soothing his frazzled nerves, when she took her place, standing in the circle, behind his spot, joining Pyry and Risto. He looked at the other tattooed faces. Terhi stood to his left, Antony next to her, Noora to his right and Juha almost across him, on Noora’s other side. The two men had no anchors behind them, which surprised him. They both had lost their Sámi women to the same cold that claimed Rolf and numerous others around the settlement. Apparently, they didn’t anchor to them and he was starting to wonder if Juha had pulled the same move as before and was anchored to another shaman. His hunch was confirmed when Antony shifted nervously and Juha glanced at him briefly. The apprentices came to stand around the circle, next to the anchors, to show they were part of the tradition.

Terhi struck the Drum of the Living, with Noora repeating it with the Drum of Spirits. They all closed their eyes and let the thrum go through them. Somewhere beyond their sight, a third drumbeat joined them, letting its presence known. He opened his eyes enough to see Juha, with the glyph simply of a shaman and Northern Lights on his forehead, to counter the tattoo of Ruto on the side of his head, frowning at the sound, but stay otherwise calm. Aada with the beginning of Sun’s Daughter tattoo on her face looking around with wide eyes, outlined Sudenmieli still raw on her hand.

The sun was setting and the sky was already lit with Northern Lights.

”We are now before you all, spirits, deities, under the Pohjantähti and Revontulet. Completing the Circle of Shaman Grand Masters. Please, Grand Masters who came before us, help us and guide us. We are bound to help everyone who shall ask for help. Help us do the right thing. Help us raise the next generation of shamans and the future Grand Masters.” He started nervously, but his voice found confidence as he kept going, looking up at the green and purple lights above them, at the brightest star blinking down at them.

There were five again. Shaman with a Wolf. Wise Woman. Strong Woman. Shaman with Fire. Shaman with Northern Lights. All the elements were present again. In the distance, the wolves began to howl again, every one of them joining their song with their own.


End file.
